logo
Behind the scenes of Boeing's big tech sale

Behind the scenes of Boeing's big tech sale

Axios23-04-2025

Boeing early last year was at yet another low point, after it was revealed that part of an Alaska Airlines plane had blown off mid-flight because of missing bolts.
That incident may have been the genesis of Boeing's decision to sell most of its digital aviation business to private equity firm Thoma Bravo for $10.55 billion, which was announced Tuesday.
Behind the scenes: Axios has learned that Thoma Bravo soon after sent a letter to Boeing's CEO and CFO, with whom it had existing relationships, suggesting ways that the debt-laden company could raise capital.
One idea was to sell off profitable tech assets that Boeing had acquired in 2000 (Jeppesen) and 2019 (ForeFlight).
By Q4, Boeing had hired banks and launched an auction.
Zoom in: There were around three dozen bidders in the initial round, including both financial sponsors and strategics.
That got whittled to fewer than 10 bidders in the second round, and then down to four — each of which either was a standalone PE firm or PE consortium.
Final bids were due Monday. Boeing picked Thoma Bravo, which in turn chose private credit over syndicated loans.
The big picture: What's remarkable about the process is that the price is said to have climbed at each stage, despite tariff tumult that's impacted other large mergers and been particularly tough on airlines.
Delta, for example, recently pulled its 2025 guidance, while United issued two different sets — depending on if the U.S. does or doesn't enter a recession.
The buyside thesis seems to be that the number of "tails" will keep climbing, even if travel suffers a near-term decline, and that those new planes will require the sort of tech that Boeing is offloading. Particularly as flight automation accelerates.
Part of this confidence is based on historical growth trends, and part on documented order backlogs.
Plus, private equity has longstanding affinity for carveouts from legacy OEMs like Boeing.
State of play: Boeing shares rose more than 6% at Wednesday's open, on better-than-expected earnings.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump's dealings with Qatar and UAE
Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump's dealings with Qatar and UAE

Yahoo

time4 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump's dealings with Qatar and UAE

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans have blocked an effort by Democrats to temporarily block arms sales to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in response to President Donald Trump's dealings in the region. Democrats forced two procedural votes Wednesday to protest Qatar's donation of a $400 million plane to be used as Air Force One and a $2 billion investment by a UAE-backed company using a Trump family-linked stablecoin, a form of cryptocurrency. Sen. Chris Murphy, who led the Democratic effort, said the U.S. Senate should not 'grease the wheels" for Trump. 'We can do that by voting to block these two arms sales to Qatar and to the UAE — not permanently, but until both countries commit to deny Trump's requests for personal enrichment as part of the bilateral relationship,' Murphy said. Trump's administration is still sorting out the legal arrangement for accepting a luxury jet from the Qatari royal family and how the plane would be modified so it is safe for the president, who has called the arrangement a 'no brainer' as a new Air Force One has faced delays at U.S.-based Boeing. Trump said he wouldn't fly around in the gifted Boeing 747 when his term ends, but Democrats, and even some Republicans, have strongly questioned the ethics of the arrangement. At a hearing on Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth refused to provide details on plans for his department to accept the jet. He said budgeting and schedules for security upgrades to turn the plane into the president's aircraft are classified. 'A memorandum of understanding remains to be signed,' Hegseth said. Democrats have also raised ethical questions about the Trump family's stake in World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency project that has launched its own stablecoin, USD1. Earlier this year, World Liberty announced an investment fund in the United Arab Emirates would be using $2 billion worth of USD1 to purchase a stake in Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. Murphy forced the votes under a mechanism known as a joint resolution of disapproval that allows the Senate to reject arms sales. The procedural vote Wednesday blocked a Democratic motion to discharge the resolution from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and move to an up-or-down vote on the Senate floor. The effort was mostly symbolic, as the measures would have had to pass both chambers of Congress and withstand any presidential veto to become law. But Murphy said the Senate should exercise its powers to oversee arms sales around the world. "We place immense trust in the president not to abuse these incredible authorities that are given to him," he said.

Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump's dealings with Qatar and UAE
Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump's dealings with Qatar and UAE

Hamilton Spectator

time5 hours ago

  • Hamilton Spectator

Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump's dealings with Qatar and UAE

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans have blocked an effort by Democrats to temporarily block arms sales to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in response to President Donald Trump's dealings in the region. Democrats forced two procedural votes Wednesday to protest Qatar's donation of a $400 million plane to be used as Air Force One and a $2 billion investment by a UAE-backed company using a Trump family-linked stablecoin, a form of cryptocurrency. Sen. Chris Murphy, who led the Democratic effort, said the U.S. Senate should not 'grease the wheels' for Trump. 'We can do that by voting to block these two arms sales to Qatar and to the UAE — not permanently, but until both countries commit to deny Trump's requests for personal enrichment as part of the bilateral relationship,' Murphy said. Trump's administration is still sorting out the legal arrangement for accepting a luxury jet from the Qatari royal family and how the plane would be modified so it is safe for the president, who has called the arrangement a 'no brainer' as a new Air Force One has faced delays at U.S.-based Boeing. Trump said he wouldn't fly around in the gifted Boeing 747 when his term ends, but Democrats, and even some Republicans, have strongly questioned the ethics of the arrangement. At a hearing on Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth refused to provide details on plans for his department to accept the jet. He said budgeting and schedules for security upgrades to turn the plane into the president's aircraft are classified. 'A memorandum of understanding remains to be signed,' Hegseth said. Democrats have also raised ethical questions about the Trump family's stake in World Liberty Financial , a cryptocurrency project that has launched its own stablecoin, USD1. Earlier this year, World Liberty announced an investment fund in the United Arab Emirates would be using $2 billion worth of USD1 to purchase a stake in Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. Murphy forced the votes under a mechanism known as a joint resolution of disapproval that allows the Senate to reject arms sales. The procedural vote Wednesday blocked a Democratic motion to discharge the resolution from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and move to an up-or-down vote on the Senate floor. The effort was mostly symbolic, as the measures would have had to pass both chambers of Congress and withstand any presidential veto to become law. But Murphy said the Senate should exercise its powers to oversee arms sales around the world. 'We place immense trust in the president not to abuse these incredible authorities that are given to him,' he said. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .

Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump's dealings with Qatar and UAE
Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump's dealings with Qatar and UAE

Associated Press

time5 hours ago

  • Associated Press

Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump's dealings with Qatar and UAE

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans have blocked an effort by Democrats to temporarily block arms sales to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in response to President Donald Trump's dealings in the region. Democrats forced two procedural votes Wednesday to protest Qatar's donation of a $400 million plane to be used as Air Force One and a $2 billion investment by a UAE-backed company using a Trump family-linked stablecoin, a form of cryptocurrency. Sen. Chris Murphy, who led the Democratic effort, said the U.S. Senate should not 'grease the wheels' for Trump. 'We can do that by voting to block these two arms sales to Qatar and to the UAE — not permanently, but until both countries commit to deny Trump's requests for personal enrichment as part of the bilateral relationship,' Murphy said. Trump's administration is still sorting out the legal arrangement for accepting a luxury jet from the Qatari royal family and how the plane would be modified so it is safe for the president, who has called the arrangement a 'no brainer' as a new Air Force One has faced delays at U.S.-based Boeing. Trump said he wouldn't fly around in the gifted Boeing 747 when his term ends, but Democrats, and even some Republicans, have strongly questioned the ethics of the arrangement. At a hearing on Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth refused to provide details on plans for his department to accept the jet. He said budgeting and schedules for security upgrades to turn the plane into the president's aircraft are classified. 'A memorandum of understanding remains to be signed,' Hegseth said. Democrats have also raised ethical questions about the Trump family's stake in World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency project that has launched its own stablecoin, USD1. Earlier this year, World Liberty announced an investment fund in the United Arab Emirates would be using $2 billion worth of USD1 to purchase a stake in Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. Murphy forced the votes under a mechanism known as a joint resolution of disapproval that allows the Senate to reject arms sales. The procedural vote Wednesday blocked a Democratic motion to discharge the resolution from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and move to an up-or-down vote on the Senate floor. The effort was mostly symbolic, as the measures would have had to pass both chambers of Congress and withstand any presidential veto to become law. But Murphy said the Senate should exercise its powers to oversee arms sales around the world. 'We place immense trust in the president not to abuse these incredible authorities that are given to him,' he said.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store